The economic viability of any manufacturing business relies, at least to some extent, on the ability to convert low cost starting materials to higher value products. Particularly in the large scale manufacture of commodity chemicals, a difference in material cost of under a dollar per unit, or even pennies per unit, can determine whether a process is economically viable or not. Maximization of the difference between material cost and product value can also render a costly process more economically attractive.
One example of a class of such processes includes processes for the production of higher alkanes and/or alkenes, e.g., those including from three to ten (C3-C10) carbon atoms. Propene, for example, can be used in the production of high performance garments for use by athletes and the military, and is also used in the production of other functional monomers, such as propylene oxide, acrylic acid, allyl chloride, and epichlorohydrin. And, alkanes and alkenes having from three to ten carbon atoms can be used in the production of gasoline.
Many conventional processes for the manufacture of these alkanes and alkenes comprising from three to ten carbon atoms (C3-C10), utilize propane as a starting material. Propane may typically cost between twenty and sixty cents per pound. And, processes for the conversion of propane to C3-C10 alkanes and alkenes are generally conducted at extreme temperatures, e.g., of 600° C. or greater, and typically require the use of a catalyst. Such process conditions are not only expensive in utility and material cost and capital equipment, but can also generate safety concerns.
Furthermore, gas phase processes conducted at such high temperatures may result in large amounts of reactant, byproduct and/or product decomposition relative to lower temperature processes. Decomposition, in turn, can take the form of carbonaceous deposits forming within the process equipment, which can shorten the time required between reactor cleaning and thereby increase reactor downtime. Catalysts used in high temperature processes may also experience a shortened active lifetime when operated at extreme temperatures, as compared to the lifetimes they may exhibit at lower operating temperatures. While catalyst regeneration is possible, it requires additional capital and operating cost.
Processes for the production of C3-C10 alkanes and alkenes would thus desirably be provided that make use of cost effective starting materials. Such processes would be further advantageous if the materials utilized were capable of utilization at operating conditions less intense than conventional materials and/or that require lesser capital expenditure to use. Elimination of the need to employ catalysts would not only provide further material savings, but also capital cost savings via elimination of the need to purchase catalyst regeneration equipment.